In the sport of archery or bow hunting, as with other forms of hunting or shooting, accuracy is imperative, since the bow operator will often only have one shot at his target. A well known accessory to a hunting bow is a bow sight, which is a device that is mounted on the bow to help the shooter aim an arrow and improve shot accuracy.
Bow sights can vary in design and complexity. A bow sight common in the prior art utilizes a series of pins that are positioned in a track such that when an operator's line of sight is aligned with the respective pin and the arrow is shot from the bow, the arrow will be at a desired height at a predetermined linear distance. The pins are typically set to establish known intervals of linear distances from the shooter. For example, a bow sight having three pins may have them set to correspond to distances of 15, 20, and 25 yards. As the operator's line of sight moves from one pin to another, the orientation of the bow is rotated with respect to the operator, thereby changing the trajectory of the arrow. By increasing the trajectory, the arrow will fly farther before falling to the desired height. The pins are set by the operator to provide a visual indicator as to when the bow is in the proper orientation such that the arrow will be at the proper height a known distance from the bow.
Bow sights provide a sufficient aid to a hunter when the hunter is to shoot a known distance. However, when the bow hunter is at an elevated position, such as in a tree stand where he can watch a larger area of land for potential targets, the distance to a target that can move often cannot be easily determined quickly and to the level of accuracy necessary to know what distance the arrow should be aimed. In order to determine the exact distance to a target from an elevated position, unless the target moves past a landmark at a known distance, bow hunters are forced to use a distance finder each time. The hunter must then raise the bow and align his line of sight with a pin having a known linear distance equal to or similar to the estimated distance to the target. This process is cumbersome to the hunter, requires extra time which instead could be spent focusing on and preparing to shoot the target, and requires extra movement, which can frequently spook the animal, resulting in the animal escaping before the hunter can take a shot.